The report, comparing 24 families in the UK, Sweden and Spain, found that materialism has a stronger influence on families in the UK than elsewhere.
Parents also found it harder to set clear boundaries with their children. Family life in the three countries was ‘strikingly different’, it found. ‘In UK homes, parents were obviously struggling to give children the time they so clearly wanted; in Spain and Sweden family time seemed to be part of the fabric of everyday life,’ the report said.
A Unicef report in 2007 ranked the UK at the bottom of a league table of 21 developed countries for children’s well-being.
The research reveals that families in the UK have a complex relationship with consumerism. Parents are committed to their children, but struggle to find enough time to spend with them. This could be due to long working hurs or the need to hold down more than one job to make ends meet. Parents often try and make up for this by buying their children the latest toys, gadgets and clothes.
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